Willamette Promise 2016-17 Annual Report - WESD€¦ · In fall of 2015, WESD was awarded a Promise Continuation Grant to support the regional education and collaboration efforts

WillamettePromise

2016-17AnnualReport

PatKetcham,Ph.DCherylDavis,Ph.D

SeniorAnalystSeniorAnalyst

WillamettePromiseAnnualReport

TableofContents

I. ListofFigures ……………………………………………………………………………… 4II. ListofTables ……………………………………………………………………………… 5III. ExecutiveSummary ………………………………………………………………….. 7IV. WillamettePromiseProgram A.Introduction ………………………………………………………………….. 9 B.Background……………………………………………………………………………… 9 C.AboutthisReport …………………………………………………………………... 10 D.WillamettePromise………….……………………………………………………….. a.EndofYearFindings………………………………………………………. 12 b.CourseEvaluations ……………………………………………………….. 24 c.2015-16WPStudentCollegeMatriculation…………………….. 27 d.ProfessionalLearningCommunities …………………….. 31 e.FacultySurvey 37V. Conclusion ………………………………………………………………………………… 39VI. Recommendations …………………………………………………………………….. 40VII. Appendices ………………………………………………………………………………… 42

11-15-17 The Center for Education Innovation, Evaluation & Research Willamette Education Service Districts

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ListofFigures

Figure1 SchoolDistrictParticipation2014-15,2015-16,&2016-17Figure2 NumberofStudentsPassingWPCoursesandCreditsEarnedFigure3 DistributionofStudentsEarnedWPCreditbyGradeLevelFigure4 CourseCreditsEarnedbyGradeLevelsFigure5 NumberandPercentofStudentsEarningEachGradeFigure6 ReasonsforTakingWPCoursesFigure7 RigorofWPCourseComparedtoOtherHighSchoolCoursesFigure8 DegreeValuedbyOtherMembersofthePLCFigure9 PercentageofTeachersWhoBelieveBuildinga College-andCareer-GoingCultureAmongStudentsand FamiliesisImportantFigure10 PercentageofWPTeachersWhoBelieveWPProficiency CoursesEncouragePostsecondaryOpportunitiesFigure11 IntentionofHighSchoolTeacherstoReturnNextYear


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ListofTables

Table1 NumberofCoursesTakenbyStudentsTable2 StudentCharacteristicsTable3 AdditionalDemographicCharacteristicsTable4 CreditsEarnedbyChronicallyAbsentStudentsTable5 EconomicallyDisadvantagedbyEthnicityTable6 CoursesTakenbyStudentsbyEthnicityTable7 StudentsWhoEarnedCreditbySchoolDistrictTable8 CoursesOfferedbySchoolDistrictTable9 ComparisonofWPCoursestoComparableCCNCoursesTable10 CollegeMatriculationbyTypeofCollegeTable11 MatriculationbyGenderTable12 College/UniversityMatriculationbyEthnicityTable13 EconomicallyDisadvantaged/ChronicallyAbsentTable14 2015/16College/UniversitySelectionTable15 Top5CollegesandUniversitiesComparisonTable16 CollegeMatriculationbyHighSchoolTable17 ProfessionalLearningCommunitiesTable18 ResponsesbyEducationalServiceDistrictsTable19 CollegeMatriculation:EconomicallyDisadvantagedTable20 PLCs:EducationalServiceDistrictInvolvementTable21 SpringOnlineMeetingTable22 PLCCollaboration


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ExecutiveSummary TheWillamettePromise(WP)giveshighschoolstudentstheopportunitytoearnup

toayearofcollegecreditandcompletecareerandtechnicalcoursesbeforehighschool

graduation.Thistwo-yearcontinuationgrantwasawardedtoWillametteEducational

ServiceDistrictaftersuccessfullyexecutingtheWillamettePromise,aone-yearEastern

Promiseexpansiongrant.TheWPcompleteditssecondyearofthegrantcycleandwasable

tosuccessfullyaccomplishthegoals.Thispastyear,atotalof1,735studentspassedatleast

oneWPcourseandearnedcollegecredit,whichexceededthegoalof1,216asstatedinthe

grantproposal.Thenumberofunderrepresentedstudents,584,exceededthegoalof442.

Courseswereofferedinninesubjectareas:Biology,Chemistry,Communication,Computer

Science,Geography,Math,Psychology,Spanish,andWriting.

AccesstocollegecreditincreasedsignificantlywithLaneEducationalService

District,NorthwestEducationalServiceDistrict(NWRESD),MultnomahEducationService

District(MESD)beingincludedbyWillametteEducationServiceDistrict(WESD)inthe

grant.TheWillamettePromisegrewfrominvolving20schooldistrictstoincluding41

schooldistricts.Similarly,thenumberofteachersinvolvedgrewfromtheinitial115high

schoolteachersin2014–15to201in2016–17.Anestimated180,000studentshadaccess

todualcreditcourses

TheWillamettePromisehasastrongcommitmenttoinclusivityandmeetingthe

needsofethnicallyandeconomicallydiversestudentpopulations.Withinthe41WPschool

districts14%arestudentswithdisabilities,26%EverEnglishLearners,30%areHispanic

students,15%arestudentsofcolor,and48%areeligibleforfreeandreducedmeals.

AsaresultoftheWP,ruralschools’accesstocollegecreditisincreasedsignificantly.

In13ofthe20ruralschooldistricts,WPofferedtheonlyaccesstothecollegecourses

offeredthroughWP.Inoneruralschool,WPcoursesweretheonlyaccesstocollegecredit.

Asinprioryears,thesefindingscontinuetosupporttheneedforadditionalwaysin

whichstudents,particularlyfromunderrepresentedand/orruralcommunities,canaccess

collegecourses.TheWillamettePromisecontinuestoprovideacollegecoursedelivery

modelthathasdemonstratedrigorandcapacitytoadapttothelimitationsfoundwithin

schooldistricts.

Thisreportisanevaluationoftheimplementationandcontinuationofthe

WillamettePromiseprogramincluding:studentcharacteristics,matriculationto


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college/university,theprocessesofthePLCs,andthedevelopmentofacollege-goingand

career-readyculture.

ThefollowingkeyfindingsarebasedonstudentswhopassedWPcourses:

• Thispastyear,1,735highschoolstudentsfrom41districtsearned9,862college

credits.

• Ofthe1,735students,618studentsearnedcreditintwoormoreclasses.

• Ofthe1,735students,approximately30%arestudentsofcolor.

• Approximately36%ofstudentswereeconomicallydisadvantaged.

• Nineteenhighereducationfacultyand201highschoolteacherscollaboratedthroughProfessionalLearningCommunities(PLCs)toprovide23proficiency-basedcourses.

• In13outof20ruralschooldistricts,WPofferedtheonlyaccesstocorecollege

classes.

• 28%ofstudentsearningcreditwerefromruralschools.

• OfthoseWPhighschoolstudentswhograduatedin2015-16,63%attendedacollegeoruniversityforatleastoneterm.

• ThemajorreasonstudentscitedfortakingWPcourseswasforcollegecredit.

• AccordingtoWPcourseevaluations,65%ofstudentsindicatedtheirWPcourse

wasverydifficulttodifficultwhencomparedtotheirotherhighschoolcourses.

• 88%ofstudentsindicatedtheywouldrecommendtheWPcoursetoanotherstudent.

• Ofthe25312thgraderswhometthecriteriaforbeingeconomically

disadvantaged,64%enrolledinacollegeoruniversityforatleastoneterm.

• 75%ofPLCteachersareplanningtoreturnin2017-18.

• 100%ofPLCfacultybelievethattheWPislikelyto:increaseaccessto

acceleratedlearningforhistoricallydisadvantagedstudents;increasethenumberofstudentswhoconsideranytypeofpostsecondaryeducationasapathafterhighschool;andincreasecollaborationbetweenhighschoolandcollegefaculty.


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WillamettePromiseProgram

Introduction

Infallof2015,WESDwasawardedaPromiseContinuationGranttosupportthe

regionaleducationandcollaborationefforts.Atthattime,theWillamettePromise

expandeditscollaborationtoincludetwoothereducationservicedistricts,NorthwestESD

andMultnomahESD.Thenagain,2016-17,theWillamettePromiseexpandedwithapilot

programpartneringwithLaneESD.WillamettePromisewascomposedof41school

districts:fivefromtheLaneRegion,onefromtheMultnomahRegion,16fromthe

NorthwestRegion,18fromtheWillametteRegion.CollaboratorswithWESDinthisproject

includedWesternOregonUniversity,OregonTech,CorbanUniversity,theSouthMetro

SalemSTEMPartnership,andtheWillametteRegionalAchievementCollaborative.

Background

Thelong-termvisionoftheWPpartnershipisfourfold:(1)provideallhighschool

studentstheopportunitytocompleteupto45creditsoftheOregonTransferModule(OTM)

coursesbeforegraduationfromhighschool,(2)empowerallstudentstoenvision

postsecondaryandcareersuccessbystrengtheningthecollege-goingcultureinour

communities,(3)providehighschoolstudentswithopportunitiesthatalignwithCareer

andTechnicalEducation(CTE)programsthatleadtocareerpathways,and(4)builda

robustinfrastructureofprofessionallyrewardingcross-sectorrelationshipsamong

educatorsanddiversepartnerswhosupportstudentsthroughthetransitionfromhigh

schooltocollegeandcareersthusmovingOregontowardsatrueP-20system.

Sincetheseinitialgoalswereestablished4,147studentshaveearned23,965credits

in23coursesin41schooldistricts.Currentpartnersgeographicallyspanbetween

northernClatsopcountyandwesternLanecounty.The41districtsparticipatinginthis

project,andtheirstudents,experiencegreatneed.Twenty-three(23)receivedlessthan

$350,000fromtheHighSchoolGraduationandCollegeandCareerReadiness(M98)

funding.Sixteen(16)havehighschoolswheremorethan50%ofthestudentsexperience

poverty.Severaldistrictsexperiencemultipledisparateachievementmarkersrelatedto

graduationrates(studentsofcolor,1;studentswithdisabilities,17;EnglishLearners,1)

and9thgradeontrackrates(studentsofcolor,2;studentsinpoverty,1;studentswith

disabilities10;EnglishLearners,2).


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ThebasisoftheWPistohonorstudentsandeducatorsbyacknowledgingthatthe

worktheydotogethermustbeengagingandmeaningfulforboth.ThroughitsProfessional

LearningCommunities(PLCs)theWPconnectshighschoolteacherswithuniversityfaculty

tofocusonwhatastudentmustknowandbeabletodotoreceivecollegecredit.Through

thisinterchange23assessment-basedandfoursponsoreddualcreditcourseshavebeen

developedby201teachersand21universityfaculty.TheWPistheonlydualcredit

programinwhichastudent’sworkisassessedbymorethanoneteachertoensurefidelity

totheassessmentrubric

In2014,theWPidentifiedkeycollegefeedercourses:GeneralBiology101,General

Biology102,IntroductoryGeneralChemistry104and150,Composition-Exposition121,

Argument/Research122,Math:IntroductiontoContemporaryMathematics95,College

Algebra111,PublicSpeakingCOMM111,andFirstandSecondYearSpanishSP101–203,as

coursesthatcouldbelayeredontomanyhighschoolmath,English,Speech,andSpanish

classestoreachasmanyunderrepresentedstudentsaspossible.In2015,General

PsychologyPSY201202,wasaddedasacourseoffering.Thispastyear,2016-17

Geography106wasaddedtotheWPcourseofferings.

AboutthisReport

Thisreportfocusesondatacollectedandanalyzedduringthe2016-17academic

year.Muchofthedatacollectedinthisreportisdescriptivedatathatassistsinthe

understandingoftheexperiencesofteachers,universityfaculty,andstudentsinvolvedin

theWillamettePromise.

AmixedmethodsresearchdesignwasusedtoevaluatetheWPgrant.Methodsin

thisdesignwerecomplementaryintheirabilitytoelaborateontheresultsfromonemethod

toanother,providingamuchmoreelaborateunderstandingofthefindings.Thisevaluation

includedobservationaldatacollection,andsurveyadministration.

AnalysisofWP’spastandpresentwillcontinuethroughoutthecomingyear.

Students’promotion,attendance,graduation,andmatriculationtocollegeoruniversitywill

befollowed.ComparisonsofgraduationratesofWP,WPstudentseligibleforFreeor

ReducedLunch,andWPstudentswhoenrolledincollegeoruniversitywillbecomparedto

thosestudentswhodidnotparticipateinWPcourses.


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WillamettePromise2016-2017EndofYearDataFindings

ThroughtheWillamettePromiseaccesstocollegecredithasincreasedsignificantly

formanystudentsthroughoutthecentralandnorthernWillametteValley.In2016-2017,

41schooldistrictsparticipatedintheWPinvolving201highschoolteachersoffering23

courses(Figure1).TheWillamettePromisehasastrongcommitmenttoinclusivityand

meetingtheneedsofethnicallyandeconomicallydiversestudentpopulations.Withinthe

41WPschooldistricts14%arestudentswithdisabilities,26%EverEnglishLearners,30%

areHispanicstudents,15%arestudentsofcolor,and48%areeligibleforfreeandreduced

meals.

Bymid-August,allgradesfromstudentstakingWPcoursesweresubmittedtothe

registraratWesternOregonUniversity(WOU).Atotalof1,735studentspassedatleastone

WPcourse(Figure2).Thisisdownapproximately5percentfrom2015-16.Atotalof618

studentsreceivedagradeintwoormoreclasses,a27%decreasefrom2015-16.Thisdrop

canbeattributedtoanewpolicythatlimitsstudentstoearncreditinonlytwoSpanish

coursesayear.Thetotalcredithoursstudentsearnedin2016-17were9,866downslightly

from10,494in2015–16.

Figure1.SchoolDistrictParticipation2014-15,2015-16&2016-17

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40 41

051015202530354045

2014-15 2015-16 2016-17


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Figure2.NumberofStudentsPassingWPCoursesandCreditsEarnedinTwoorMorecourses

WhoAreOurStudents?

Table1.NumberofCoursesTakenbyStudents(N=1735)

Table2showsthecharacteristicsofstudentswhoearnedWPcreditthispastyear.

Slightlymorethanhalfofthestudentswerefemale(58%)andthemajorityofstudents

(66%)werewhite.

608

175

1819

856

1735

618

0200400600800100012001400160018002000

UnduplicatedCount StudentsEarningCreditinTwoorMoreCourses

2014-15 2015-16 2016-17

1117

526

63 23 4 20

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1 2 3 4 5 6


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Table2.StudentCharacteristics

Table3alsoprovidesmoredetaileddemographicinformationofthosestudents

enrolledintheWP.StudentswhoareeligibleforFreeorReducedMealsarereportedto

ODEaseconomicallydisadvantaged.AsmallportionofWPstudents,3%hadlimited

Englishproficiency.Interestingly,292(17%)ofthesestudentspassedatleastoneWP

coursewerestudentsidentifiedaschronicallyabsent.

Oregon’sabsenteeismrateshavebeenfoundtobeoneoftheworstinthenation.

Lastyear,28percentofOregonhighschoolstudentsmissed10percentormoreofthe

schoolyear.1Agenerallyaccepteddefinitionofchronicabsenteeismismissing10%or

moreofschooldaysannually.2Therangeofabsenteeismratesforschooldistricts

participatingintheWPwasbetween7and29%.3Twenty-fourschooldistrictshad

absenteeismratesofhigherthan20%,ofthose15wereruralschooldistricts.Ascitedin

theChiefEducationOffice’sChronicAbsenteeismReport,studentsofcolor,ruralstudents,

andlow-incomestudentshavehigherlevelsofabsenteeism.Ourdatahighlightsthispoint

well:ofthe292studentswhowerechronicallyabsent,approximately36%were

economicallydisadvantaged,66%werefemale,39%wereethnicallydiverseand30%were

fromruralschools.

Furtheranalysiswasconductedonthetypesofcourseschronicallyabsentstudents

passed(seeTable4below).Similartolastyear,someofthemostcommoncourseswere

Spanishcourses,however,therewasasignificantincreaseinthenumberofstudents

Characteristic n %Female 1009 58%Male 725 42%White 1149 66%Hispanic 438 25%Multi-racial 71 4%Asian 55 3%AmericanIndian/AlaskanNative 13 <1%Black/AfricanAmerican 6 <1%NativeHawaiian/PacificIslander 2 <1%Total 1734

Table3.AdditionalDemographicCharacteristicsCharacteristic n %FreeorReducedLunch 627 36%ChronicallyAbsent 292 17%LimitedEnglish 51 3%


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earningcreditinWriting121,andChemistry104.Forexample,in2015-16,11chronically

absentstudentsearnedcreditinChemistry104,in2016-17,36studentsearnedcredit,a

227%increase.Aschronicabsenteeismhasbecomemoreofafocusoverthelastyearat

thestatelevel,thereasonsbehindthishavegroupedintothreedifferentcategories:cannot

goreasons(e.g.bullying,health,transportation,andfamilyissues),aversions(e.g.academic

struggles,poorschoolclimate,weakparentengagement),anddonotgoreasons(e.g.family

doesnotconsideritimportant,needtosupportfamily)anddisengagement(lackof

relevant,engaginginstruction,nomeaningfulrelationshipswithadults,andpoorschool

climate).4WhiletheWPdoesnothavedirectcontroloverthesepotentialreasonsfor

chronicabsenteeism,itdoeshelpcreateacollege-goingculturewithintheschoolsand

provideanopportunityfordisadvantagedstudentstoexperiencecollege-levelcourse

successandbeapartofthecollege-goingcultureoftheirschool.

Table4.CreditsEarnedbyChronicallyAbsentStudents(n=292)Class n Percent% Class n Percent%

WR121 64 22% MTH111 10 3%SP103 43 15% PSY201 9 3%CH104 36 12% GEOG106 7 2%SP202 35 12% MTH95 7 2%SP201 52 18% PSY202 6 2%SP102 42 9% PSY202 6 2%CS124 23 8% BIO101 4 1%COM111 25 9% CH150 3 1%WR122 17 6% CH150 3 1%WR115 15 5% MTH70 2 <1%SP203 13 5% MTH112 1 <1%SP101 13 5% BIO102 1 <1%

Overall,approximately36%ofWPstudentswhoearnedcreditareconsidered

economicallydisadvantaged.Ofthe36%ofstudentswhoareeconomicallydisadvantaged,

14%arewhiteand21%areHispanic,andtheother2%representsstudentsofcolor(Table

5).


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Table5.EconomicallyDisadvantagedbyEthnicity

Additionally,Table5containsinformationoneconomicallydisadvantagedstudents

withintheirethnicity.Thesedataprovideagreaterunderstandingofeconomicchallenges

withinethnicgroupsofstudents.Forexample,82%ofallHispanicstudentswhoearned

creditqualifyaseconomicallydisadvantagedcomparedto20%ofwhitestudents.

StudentssuccessfullycompletingWPcoursesrangedfrom9th–12thgrade(Figure3).

Thelargestpercentageofstudentspassingclasseswas11thgraders(33%)followedby10th

graders(30%).NotincludedinFigure3werethree8thgradestudents.

Figure3.DistributionofStudentsEarnedWPCreditbyGradeLevel(N=1734)

Figure4representsthenumberofWPcoursespassedbygradelevel.Sequence

courses,suchasBiology,Psychology,Math,SpanishandWriting,wereclusteredtogetherto

providegreaterinsightintowhichstudentsaremorelikelytotakewhichtypesofcourses

bygradelevel.Forexample,inthewritingcourses,moststudentsearningcreditwere12th

graders,vs.averysmallnumberof12thgraderswhoearnedcreditinfirstyearSpanish.The

mostcommonclassfor9thgraderstohaveearnedcreditinwasComputerScience.

Characteristic n EconDisadv %ofTotal %ofED %w/iEthnicityWhite/Asian 1204 238 14% 38% 20%Hispanic 438 360 21% 57% 82%Other 92 29 2% 5% 32%Total 1734 627 36% 100% NA

9th17710%

10th51630%

11th57333%

12th46527%


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Figure4.CourseCreditsEarnedbyGradeLevels

Therewere1735studentswhotookatotalof2478courses(seeTable6).The

courseswiththelargestnumberofstudentspassingincludedChemistry104(n=355),WR

121(n=255),Spanish103(n=213),Spanish102(n=202),andSpanish201(n=196).The

coursewiththelargestincreaseinstudentsearningcreditwasChemistry104whichhas

experiencedsignificantgrowthoverthepastthreeyears.In2014-15,23studentsearned

credit,2015-16,162studentsearnedcreditandthispastyear355students.Overall,

Spanishcoursesexperiencedadecreaseinstudentsearningcreditthispastyear,aresultof

anewpolicythatlimitedstudentstotwoSpanishcoursesperyear.

Inaddition,Table6highlightscoursecreditsearnedbyethnicity.Hispanicstudents

earnedthegreatestnumberofcreditsinSpanishcourses,theninChemistry104.For

purposesofouranalysis,WhiteandAsianwerecombinedastheyarenotconsidered

underrepresentedpopulations.AnalysisofcoursestakenbyWhite/Asianand

Underrepresented(HispanicandOthercombined)foundthatapproximately87%of

White/AsianstudentsearnedcreditincoursesotherthanSpanish,whileonly49%of

UnderrepresentedstudentsearnedcreditsincoursesotherthanSpanish.Thisrepresentsa

gapof38%,ofunderrepresentedstudentscomparedtoWhite/Asianstudentswhotake

coursesotherthanSpanish.

Table6.CoursesTakenbyStudentsbyEthnicity

0 100 200 300 400 500 600

Geography

Biology

Communications

Math-Developmental

ComputerScience

Math

Psychology

Spanish-2ndyear

Chemistry

Writing

Spanish-1styear

9th 10th 11th 12th


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Course White/Asian Hispanic Other TotalBI101 37 3 1 41BI102 34 4 2 40CH104 287 43 25 355CH150 45 5 2 52COM111 67 20 8 95CS124 83 19 9 111CS160 3 1 0 4GEOG106 47 14 9 70MTH070 7 0 0 7MTH095 81 10 3 94MTH111 91 7 2 100MTH112 22 0 2 24PSY201 53 8 5 66PSY202 49 9 2 60SPAN101D 86 35 4 125SPAN102D 141 51 10 202SPAN103D 110 95 8 213SPAN201D 17 179 0 196SPAN202D 2 147 0 149SPAN203D 1 49 1 51WR115 59 12 5 76WR121 204 34 17 255WR122 80 9 3 92Total 1606 754 118 2478 Therewere41schooldistrictsparticipatingintheWillamettePromise(Table7).Of

the41schooldistricts,20(49%)arecategorizedasruralbytheODEdefinitionofrural.All

butfourschooldistricts(Rainer*,Springfield,Suislaw,andVeronia*)hadatleastone

studentpassaWPclass.

Table7.StudentsWhoEarnedWPCreditbySchoolDistrict(N=1734)SchoolDistrict n SchoolDistrict n

Amity* 8 NorthSantiam(Stayton)

86

Banks* 49 Perrydale* 16

Beaverton 24 PleasantHill* 10

Cascade* 23 NestuccaValley* 31

Central 46 NorthMarion* 4

Clatskanie* 19 Riverdale 34


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Creswell 6 Salem-Keizer 390

Dallas 40 Scappoose* 34

Dayton* 2 Sheridan* 41

ForestGrove 159 SilverFalls 128

Gaston* 13 SouthLane 22

Gervais 13 St.Helens 84

Hillsboro 1 St.Paul* 23

Jefferson* 35 Tigard-Tualatin 151Jewell* 4 Willamina* 15JunctionCity 18 Woodburn 56Knappa* 20 YamhillCarlton* 45Mt.Angel(JohnF.Kennedy)

10 Other 4

NeahKahNie* 70 Total 1734*RuralSchoolDistrictsasdefinedbyODE

Courseswereanalyzedbythenumberofschooldistrictsofferingeachofthe

courses,thenumberofstudentsinthosecourses,andthecreditsearnedpercourse.Notall

coursesofferthesamenumberofcredits,Biology101and102arefive-creditcourses,

Communication111isathree-creditcourse,andinallothercoursesstudentsearnedfour

credithours.Chemistry104isthemostcommoncourseofferedthroughtheWillamette

Promise,followedbySpanish103andWriting121.Thetwocoursesofferedinthefewest

schooldistrictsareMath70andComputerScience160.Bothofthesecoursesarenew

courseofferings.

Table8.CoursesofferedbySchoolDistrict 2016-2017Course #ofSD #ofStudents #ofCredits

BIO101 7 41 205

BIO102 8 40 200

Chem104 17 356 1,424Chem150 4 52 208Comm111 4 95 285CS124 7 111 333CS160 1 4 16Geo106 4 70 280Math70 1 7 28


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Math95 6 96 384Math111 10 100 400Math112 4 24 96Psy201 3 66 264Psy202 4 60 240Span101 10 125 500Span102 14 202 808Span103 16 213 852Span201 13 196 784Span202 11 149 596Span203 7 51 204WR115 10 77 308WR121 14 255 1020WR122 9 92 368

Total 41 1734 9866

Figure5containstheanalysisofthegradedistributionofstudents’coursegrades.

Approximately57%ofstudentsreceivedanAand31%receivedaB,whileonly12%of

studentsearnedaC.Studentshavetheopportunitytoselecttoreceivea“college”gradein

theWPcourseinwhichtheyareenrolled.Itisverylikelythatmanystudentswhowould

havereceivedaCdecidednottopursuecollegecredit.Theoverallgradepointaveragefor

theWP2016-17cohortwas3.38.

Figure5.NumberandPercentofStudentsEarningEachGrade

WillametteESD(WESD),thelargestoftheESDsparticipating,hadthemostnumber

ofstudentspassingclasses(57%).ThisisthethirdyearoftheWPfortheWESDregion.

NorthwestRegionalESD,intheirsecondyearwiththeWP,had14schooldistricts

A

142357%

B

75831%

C

30012%

A

B

C


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participatingandrepresented38%ofstudentspassingatleastonecourse.MultnomahESD

hadoneschooldistrictparticipatingintheWPthispastyear,andrepresented2%of

studentspassingatleastonecourse.

Oregon,likemanyareasinthenation,ischallengedbyruraleducationattainment.

WhilemanyruralareasinOregonaremovingawayfromtraditionalindustriessuchas

agricultureandtimber,manyhavenotredesignedtheirinfrastructureneedswiththe

educationandskillrequirementsforjobsthatrequirehigherlevelsofeducation.Distancein

ruralOregoncreatesadditionalchallengesforsomestudents.Illnessesanddoctor’svisits

canturnintoprolongedabsenteeism.Additionally,studentshavelimitedexposureto

collegeanduniversitycampuses,whichinturnmeanslowerratesofenrollmentinhigher

education.5Arecentstudyfoundthatruralstudentsarelesslikelythantheirnon-rural

counterpartstoenrollinpostsecondaryeducationandtopersisttothesecondyearof

college,regardlessoftheirpreviousachievementlevels.6With49%WPschoolsresidingin

ruralareas,accesstocollege-goingandcareer-readycoursesbecomesincreasingly

importantforthelifelongsuccessofthesestudents.

Table9providesacomparisonofWPofferingsandcomparableCollegeCreditNow

(CCN)offeringsandotherdualcreditopportunitieswithinschooldistricts.Information

regardingdualcreditopportunitieswasreadilyavailableforWESD,whileinformationfor

NWRESDandMESDwasnotasreadilyavailable.AsummaryforWPschooldistrictsis

sharedbelow.Thereare20ruraldistrictswithintheWPasdefinedbyODE.In13ofthose

schools,WPprovidedtheonlyopportunityforaccesstotheWPofferedcollegecredit

courseswithintheschooldistrict.

Table9ComparisonofWPCoursestoComparableCCNCoursesWPSchoolDistricts WPCourseOffered CCNCoursesbyDistrictAmity* SP**,CH104 MTH111,112,WR121,122Banks* SP,CH104,BIO101/102

MTH111,112,PSY201-202,WR12,122

BIO101,102

Beaverton GEO106,PSY201-202 Math111,112,WR121,122

Cascade* CH104,MTH,SP,PSY201-202

SP101-201,WR115,121,122

Central CS124,GEO106,PSY201-201,WR115,121,122

Math111,112

Clatskanie* WR115/121/122 NoinformationavailableCreswell BIO101,102,CH104 Math111,112,CIS101,WR

115,121


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Dallas BIO101-102,CH104,MTH70,95,PSY201-202,SP,WR115,121

Nocrosslistings

Dayton* BIO101/102,CH104,MTH70,95,111,WR115,121,121

MTH111,112,WR121,WR122

Gaston* CH104,BIO101/102,MTH111,112,Geo106,SP

Nocrosslistings

Gervais WR115/121/122SP,MTH70/95/111

WR121,122

Hillsboro MTH111,112,WR115,121,122

BI101,102,103

Jefferson* BIO101-102,CH104,SP,WR115,121,122

Math111,112

Jewell* BIO101/102,COMM111,SP,PSY201/202,CS124

Nocrosslistings

JunctionCity CS124,WR115,121,122 NoinformationavailableKnappa* MTH70/95/111,112 NoinformationavailableNeah-Kah-Nie* CS124,WR115/121/122,

MTH70/95/111,112,BIO101/102,CH104,SP

Noinformationavailable

Nestucca* WR115/121/122,COMM111,CS124,CH104


NorthMarion* CS124MTH70/95

WR115,WR121,WR122,MTH111,MTH112

NorthSantiam(Stayton) BIO101,102,CH104,GEO106,MTH111,112,PSY201-202,SP

WR115,121,122,

Perrydale* GEO106,Com111,CH104 NocrosslistingsPleasantHill* SP Bio101,102,Math111,

112,WR121Rainer* CH104,MTH70,95 NoinformationavailableSalem-Keizer BIO101,102,CH104,COM

111,CS124,160,GEO106,MTH70,95,111,112,PSY201,201,SP,WR115,121,122

Largenumberofcoursesofferedvariesbyschool.

Scappoose* BIO101,102,CH104,MTH70,95,111,112,SP101-203

Nocrosslistings

Sheridan* CS124,160,COM111,GEO106,WR115/121/122,MTH70/95/111,SP,BIO101/102

Nocrosslistings

SilverFalls(Silverton) BIO101-102,CS124,160,MTH70,95,MTH111,112,SP,WR115,121,122

Nocrosslistings

SouthLane COMM111,PSY201,202,SP



23

Springfield WR115,121,122 Math95,WR121,122,BI101,102,SP101-203,CH150

St.Helens BIO101,102,CH104,SP, NoinformationSt.Paul* SP,CH104,WR

115/121/122Nocrosslistings

Suislaw BIO101-102 CH104,MTH111,112,SP101-203

Tigard-Tualatin CH104 NoinformationavailableVernonia* SP NocrosslistingsWillamina* SP,MTH70/95/111 MTH111,MTH112COM

111Woodburn BI101-102,CH104,MTH

95,111,112,SP,WR115,121

Yamhill-Carlton* BIO101-102,CH104,GEO106,MTH70/95/111,SP101-203,WR115/121/122

Nocrosslistings

*RuralSchoolasdefinedbyODE**UnlessotherwisenotedSP(Spanish)representsschoolofferingSpanish101,102,103&201,202,203


24

CourseEvaluations Attheendoftheacademicyear,aWPcourseevaluationwassenttothe1735

studentswhocompletedaWPcoursewithinthelastschoolyear.Thecourse

evaluationwasstructuredcloselytothecourseevaluationusedbyWOU.The

responserateofthecourseevaluationwaslow,approximately19%.WPstudents

weresentthreeremindersoveramonth’stimeinanattempttoincreasethe

responserate.Thelargestportionofstudentswhorespondedtothesurveywere

Seniors33%,followingbyJuniors31%,Sophomore27%andFreshman11%.

Studentsweretoprovidethereason(s)thatbestdescribedwhytheytooka

WPcourse.ThemostcommonreasonwhystudentstookWPcourseswasfor

collegecredit(75%).Figure6belowhighlightsstudents’reasonsfortakingWP

courses.

Figure6.ReasonsforTakingWPCourses(N=234)

StudentswereaskedtocomparetherigoroftheWPcoursestootherhigh

schoolcoursestheyhadtaken.Asanticipated,themajorityofstudentsindicated

courseswereverydifficulttodifficultcomparedtotheirotherhighschoolcourses.

(seeFigure7below).

75%

12%

2% 2% 2% 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Forcollegecredit Myteacherencouragedme

WouldliketoknowifIcanpassacollegeclass

WorkingtowardsanA.A.Degree

Workingtowardsacertification


25

Figure7.RigorofWPCourseComparedtoOtherHighSchoolCourses(N=234)

Studentswereaskedtheamountoftimeperweekoutsideoftheclassroomwas

spentontheirWPcourse.Moststudents(83%)spent0-5hoursoutsidetheclassroomon

theWPcoursework.

Studentswereaskedtorespondtoaseriesofquestionsregardinghowthe

coursewastaught.Courseevaluationsreflectedthatstudentsfeltthatthecourses

weretaughteffectively,84%stronglyagreed/agreedthattheassignments

contributedtotheirlearning;thatconceptswerepresentedinwaysthathelped

themlearn(86%);theinstructorwaseffectiveinteachingthesubjectmatterinthe

course(91%)and88%saidtheywouldrecommendthecoursetoanotherstudent.

Studentswereaskedwhatcontributedmosttotheirlearninginthecourse.The

mostcommonresponsewastheteacher.Over76responsesreferredtotheteacher

insomewayastheattributetowhatcontributedmosttothestudentslearning.

Examplesofcommentsasfollows:

• Myteacherhelpedustounderstandandovercomeanyproblemswehad.• Myteacherswerewonderful.• Myteachers’dedication.• Myteacherdidhisjobextremelywellandtaughtconceptsinwaysthatwere

easytounderstand.• Myteacherwasveryinteractivewiththeclassandmadesuretokeepthe

subjectveryinterestingandengaging.

65%

26%

8%

00%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

VeryDifficulttoDifficult Thesameasmyotherclasses

Easy VeryEasy


26

Anotherquestionasked,What,ifanything,madeitharderforyoutolearn?Themost

common(approximately24concerns)wasaboutotherstudentsbeingdisruptive,or

distracting/obnoxiousintheclassroom;andthetimedemandsofthecourse,either

lackoftimeonthesubjectitselforspeedofthecourse.Seebelowforexamplesof

studentcomments:

• Distractionintheclassroom• Howfastpaceditcouldbe.Attimes,itisdifficulttokeepupwiththedeadlines.• Theclassroomenvironmentandtheotherstudentsintheclass.• Therewasmuchmorestudyingnecessarytounderstandthecriteria.• Alltheextrawork.• Howmanythingsthatneededtobecompleted/passedjusttoearnacollege

credit.


27

WillamettePromise2015–16WPStudentCollegeMatriculation

In2015-16,493highschoolgraduates,allseniors,earnedcollegecredit

throughtheWillamettePromiseprogram.Ofthose,311students(63%)attendedat

leastonetermofcollegeoruniversitybeginningthefall,winterorspringtermsor

semesters.Table10highlightsthecomparisonofWPhighschoolgraduates’college

selectionby2014/15and2015/16.

Table10.CollegeMatriculationbyTypeofCollegeCollegeType 2014/15 2015/16Atleast1termorsemester 73% 63%PublicCollege/Univ. 86% 87%PrivateCollege 14% 13%2YearCollege 60% 51%4YearCollege 40% 48%

Consistentwithtrendsinhighereducation,alargerproportionoffemales

attendedcollege(NCES,2016).Nationally,femalestudentsmakeup56%ofthe

totalundergraduatepopulation;theproportionofWPfemalestudentswho

attendedcollegewas59%,slightlyhigherthanthenationaltrend(seeTable11

below).

Table11.MatriculationbyGender

2014/15 2015/16Gender N Percent N PercentFemale 102 68% 184 59%Male 47 32% 127 41%Total 149 311

Table12highlightsthestudentsthatattendedcollegebyethnicity.Alarge

proportionofthosestudentswhocompletedWPcoursesinthe12thgradeenrolled

inacollegeoruniversity.In2015-16,64%ofWhiteand70%ofHispanicWP

studentsenrolledinacollege/university.


28

Table12.College/UniversityMatriculationbyEthnicityEthnicity 2015/16 PercentAttendingCollegein2015-16 Percent(N) White 67%(209) 64%Hispanic/Latino 30%(94) 70%Multi-racial 3%(10) 59%Black/AfricanAmerican <1%(1) 100%Asian 2%(5) 36%Hawaiian/PacificIslander AmericanIndian/AlaskaNative

Ofthoseattendingcollege,approximately52%wereidentifiedas

economicallydisadvantagedduringhighschool.Thisisslightlyhigherthanthe51%

ofeconomicallydisadvantaged12thgraderswhopassedWPcoursesin2014-15.

Table13.EconomicallyDisadvantaged/ChronicallyAbsentCharacteristic 2014/15 2015/16

N Percent N PercentEconomicallyDisadvantaged

40 51% 162 52%

ChronicallyAbsent NA NA 51 16%*NA=notcurrentlyavailable

WillamettePromisestudentsattended38differentcollegesanduniversities(Table14).Table14.2015/16College/UniversitySelection(N=311)College/University

#ofStudents

Percent

College/University

#ofstudents

Percent

ChemeketaCC 127 41% BiolaUniversity 1 <1%OSU 39 13% BlueMountainCC 1 <1%WesternOregonUniversity

37

12%

BoiseStateUniversity

1 <1%

PCC 22 7% CalPoly 1 <1%UniversityofOregon

15 5% CentralOregonCC 1 <1%

Linfield 12 4% ClatsopCC 1 <1%PSU 6 2% ColumbiaBasin

College1 <1%

LBCC 5 2% ConcordiaUniversity

1 <1%

OIT 5 2% CorbanUniversity 1 <1%BYU 4 1% DePaulUniversity 1 <1%


29

Pacific 3 1% EasternMennoniteUniversity

1 <1%

SOU 3 1% EasternOregonUniversity

1 <1%

BYU-Idaho 2 1% EverestCollege-Tigard

1 <1%

GeorgeFoxUniversity

2 1% ReedCollege 1 <1%

LewisandClarkCollege

2 1% SouthwestCC 1 <1%

NWChristianUniversity

2 1% UniversityofIdaho 1 <1%

TillamookBayCC 2 1% UniversityofMinn.-TwinCities

1 <1%

WhitmanCollege 2 1% UniversityofUtah 1 <1%WillametteUniversity

2 1% WarnerPacific 1 <1%

Table15highlightsthetop5collegeanduniversitiesattendedbyWP

studentsinboth2014-15and2015-16.Overthepasttwoyears,thetopschool

selectedforattendancewasChemeketaCommunityCollege.Thispastyear,Oregon

StateUniversity(OSU)andWesternOregonUniversity(WOU)wererespectivelythe

secondandthirdselectionsforWPstudents.

Table15.Top5CollegesandUniversitiesComparison

College/University

2014/15Percent(n)

Rank

2015/16Percent(n)

Rank

ChemeketaCC 50%(74) 1 41%(127) 1OSU 10%(15) 2 13%(39) 2UniversityofOregon 5%(8) 3 5%(15) 5WOU 5%(7) 3 12%(37) 3PCC 4%(6) 5 7%(22) 4

Ofthosestudentswhoattendedacollege/university,59(19%)werefrom

ruralschools(Table16).Thisiscomparableto2014/15data,where17%or26

studentswerefromruralschools.


30

Table16.CollegeMatriculationbyHighSchool2015-16(N=311)HighSchool n PercentMcMinnville 50 16%Dallas 28 9%McNary 27 9%Woodburn 23 7%YamhillCarlton* 19 6%McKay 17 5%Jefferson 15 5%St.Paul* 15 5%Century 13 4%NorthSantiam(Stayton) 13 4%Banks* 11 4%Central 11 4%Silverton 08 3%St.Helens 08 3%Sheridan 06 2%Cascade* 05 2%Hillsboro 05 2%JohnF.Kennedy 05 2%NorthSalem 05 2%RainerJr/Sr 05 2%Sprague 05 2%SouthSalem 04 1%Neah-Kah-Nie* 03 1%Sherwood 02 <1%Tigard 02 <1%Tillamook* 02 <1%Amity* 01 <1%Gaston* 01 <1%

Gervais* 01 <1%Perrydale* 01 <1%

Total 311 *RuralasdefinedbyODE


31

ProfessionalLearningCommunities

AkeytothesuccessoftheWillamettePromiseistheProfessionalLearning

Communities(PLCs).TheWPisahybridmodelofaPLCscomposedofhighschooland

highereducationfaculty.Alloftheten(Biology,Chemistry,Communications,Computer

Science,Geography,Math70/95,Math111/112,Psychology,Spanish,andWriting)PLCs

havedevelopedproficiency-basedassessmentrubricsforeachofthecorecourses.The

numberofcoursestaughtwithineachPLCvary.Forexample,Spanishoffersatotalofsix

classes,Writingthree,andCommunicationsone.

Table17providesanoverviewofthegrowthofthePLCsoverthelastthreeyears.The

numberofPLCsexpandedwiththeincreasednumberofcourseofferingsovertime.

Table17.ProfessionalLearningCommunities2014-15,2015-16,&2016-17 2014-15 2015-16 2016/17

PLCs 7 9 10#ofPLCMeetings 28 36 40Teachers 114 194 201Faculty 20 21 21

In2016-17,anadditionaleducationalservicedistrict,LaneESD,beganparticipatingin

theWP,bringingthetotaltofourESDs.Anendoftheyearsurveywasadministeredtoall

PLCteacherstobetterunderstandtheworkandperceptionsofPLCmembers.Questionsin

thesurveyaddressedusefulnessofPLCmeetings,perceptionsoffeelingvalued,

effectivenessoftimespentinthePLCmeetings.Additionally,thesurveyservestogather

informationtoassistWPstaffandcollegefacultyinprovidingfurtherassistancetoPLC

teachers,andplanforfuturemeetings.Overall,35%ofPLCteachersrespondingtothe

surveywerenewtoWPthispastyear.Ashighlightedearlier,theWillametteESDhasthe

largestnumberofteachersparticipatingintheprogram.

Table18.ResponsesbyEducationalServiceDistrictESD Number Percent

WillametteESD 72 66%

NorthwestESD 31 28%

LaneESD 4 4%

MultnomahESD 2 2%


32

ThemajorityofthesurveyparticipantsattendedallormostofthePLCmeetingsheld

throughouttheyear.Approximately70%ofPLCmembersattended3-4meetings

throughouttheyear.

TheEndoftheYearPLCsurveywasonlyadministeredtohighschoolteachers.A

surveyofhighered.facultywasconductedseparately.Differentthanfrompastyears,the

springPLCwasanonlinePLCusingtheCanvasdiscussionboard.TheonlinePLCwasa

pilottoaddressissuesinfindingsubstitutes,thedistancetotheWESDforPLCmeetingsfor

someattendeesandanoverallcuriositytoseehowwellthismightwork.Thefeedback

fromteachersishighlightedinTable19.Overwhelmingly,responsesfortheonlinePLC

formatwasnotstronglysupportedbyeitherhighschoolteachersoruniversityfaculty.

Table19.SpringOnlineMeeting(N=90) StronglyAgree/AgreeTheSpringPLCmeeting,metyourexpectations? 55%TheSpringPLCmeetingworthmytime. 54%TheSpringPLCmeetingmetmyneeds 55%

ThemostsignificantfindingfromthePLCEndofYearsurveyswasthehigh

agreementwith“OurPLCmembersengageindialoguethatreflectsarespectfordiverse

ideasandopinions”(92%).Twoitemswereinthemidtomid-high80%range:“OurPLCis

activelyinvolvedincreatinghighexpectationsthatservetoincreasestudentachievement”

(87%)and“Wehaveestablishedproficiencieswewantstudentstoachieve”(86%).There

aretwostatementsthatfellbelowan80%thresholdrange:“Iamsatisfiedwiththeamount

oftimetherewasforlearning-focusedcollaboration(76%),and“Wehaveestablished

proficiencieswewanteachstudenttoachieve”(69%).Inthelattertwostatements,thereis

anopportunityinthecomingyeartohaveagreaterfocusonlearning-focused

collaborationswithinthePLCs.Regardingtheestablishmentofproficienciesthatmeasure

achievement,therearesomePLCmemberswhoarenotquiteassatisfiedwiththe

assessments(someofthatcomesfromnotbeinginvolvedintheirdevelopmentduringthe

previousyear)andotherswhodonotcompletelyagreewithsomeoftheassessmentsfora

varietyofreasons(seeTable20).


33

Table20.PLCCollaboration(N=108)Item StronglyAgree/AgreeOurPLCmembersengageindialoguethatreflectsarespectfordiverseideasandopinions.

92%

OurPLCisactivelyinvolvedincreatinghighexpectationsthatservetoincreasestudentachievement.

87%

Wehaveestablishedproficiencieswewanteachstudenttoachieve. 86%Iamsatisfiedwiththeamountoftimethereisforlearning-focusedcollaborationatthePLCmeetings.

76%

ThereareadequateopportunitiestoreviewsamplepapersandrubricsatourPLCmeetings.

69%

FeelingValuedasPLCMembers

Figure11summarizesthedegreetowhichnewandreturningmembersofthePLCs

feelvalued.Attheendofyear,77%ofteachersreportedfeelingveryvaluedorvalued

comparedto79%atmid-year.Therewasnostatisticallysignificantdifferencebetween

newandreturningteachers(X2(4,N=108)=8.79,p=.066).However,theresponses

areinconsistentwithpreviousendoftheyearPLCresponsestothisquestion.

Typically,theteachershavefeltmorevaluedattheendoftheyear,ratherthan

slightlyless.Itisunclear,whatmightcontributetothedecreaseinPLCmembersfeeling

lessvaluedbyothermembersoftheirPLCs.OneconsiderationistheSpringPLCwas

conductedonline,asopposedtobringingPLCmemberstogetherattheWESD.Thislackof

contactwithothermembers,andusingavirtualdiscussionboardmayhavecontributedto

thisdecreaseinperceivedvalue.


34

Figure11.ToWhatDegreeDoYouThinkYouAreValuedbyOtherMembersofyourPLC?(N=108)

14%

49%

24%

8% 5%

21%

35%

6% 3% 1% 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

VeryValued Valued SomewhatValued

NotVeryValued NotValuedatAll

NewTeachers ReturningTeachers


35

BuildingaCollege-andCareer-GoingCulture

Figure12isconsistentwithlastyear’sfindingsthatthereisstrongoverall

agreementthatintoday’sschoolsitisimportanttobuildacollege-andcareer-goingculture

amongstudentsandfamilies.Overall,89%ofPLCteachersfeltbuildingacollegeandcareer

goingcultureamongstudentsandfamiliesisimportant.Therewasnosignificantdifference

betweennewandreturningteachersX2(3,N=107)=3.40,p=.334.

Figure12.PercentageofTeachersWhoBelieveBuildingaCollege-andCareer-GoingCultureAmongStudentsandFamiliesisImportant(N=107)

55%

34%

11%

41%

48%

9% 3%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

VeryImportant Important ModeratelyImportant SlightlyImportant



36

Figure13highlightsthatthemajorityofPLCmembersbelieveWPcoursesareeffectivein

encouraginghighschoolstudentstoseekpostsecondaryopportunities.Therewasno

significantdifferencebetweennewandreturningteachersX2(4,N=107)=4.99,p=.288

Figure13.PercentageofWPTeachersWhoBelieveWPProficiencyCoursesEncouragePostsecondaryOpportunities(N=107)

Eighty-twopercentofteachersfeltthatthePLCswereeitherusefulorveryusefulinhelping

developmaterialsneededtoimplementtheirproficiencycourse.Manyofthediscussionsin

eachofthePLCswerefocusedonteacherssharingteachingstrategiesandrefiningrubrics

tobeusedintheclassroom.Often,returningteacherswereabletosharetheirexperiences

fromthepreviousyearandhelpguidetheworkofthePLCs

Aspreviouslymentioned,thePLCsthispastspringwereconductedvirtuallyrather

thaninperson.ResponsestothevirtualPLCsabilitytomeetteacher’sexpectationswas

mixed(seeTable21below).

18%

47%

24%

11%

23%

51%

10% 13%

2%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

VeryEffective Effective NeitherEffectiveorIneffective

Somewhateffective

Notatalleffective



37

Table21.HowWellDidtheSpringPLCOnlineMeetingMetYourExpectations(N=103) Strongly

Agree/AgreeNeitherAgreeorDisagree

Disagree/StronglyDisagree

TheSpringPLCwasworthmytime

54% 30% 16%

TheSpringPLCmetmyneeds

55% 27% 17%

TheSpringPLCmetmyexpectations

55% 30% 15%

PLCmemberswereaskedtorankbenefitsthatresultedfromtheirinvolvementin

WillamettePromise.Thetopthreeoverallreportedbenefitsresultingfrominvolvementin

PLCsweretheabilityofstudentstohaveaccesstocollegecredit;theopportunityto

collaboratewithcolleaguesandtheopportunitytoworkwithhighered.faculty.

Figure14belowsummarizestheintentionoftheteachersplanningonreturningto

WPin2017–18.Themajorityofbothnewandreturningteachers(75%)planonreturning

in2017-2018.Themostcommonreasonsforthoseeitherindicating“maybe”orthatthey

were“notreturning”included:(1)theirdistrictworkingwithNWPromisenextyear,or(2)

notteachingthecoursenextyear.

Figure14.IntentionofHighSchoolTeacherstoReturntoPLCNextYear

66%

28%

6%

80%

9% 11%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

Yes Maybe No



38

FacultySurveyResults AttheendofacademicyearPLCfacultywereaskedtorespondtoabriefonline

survey.ThesurveywasanopportunityforthePLCfacultytoprovidefeedbackonthe

programandtodeterminefromafacultyperspectiveifthePLCswerefulfillingthegoals.

Therewere13respondents,representing6differentPLCs.Manyofthefaculty

involvedwiththeWPhaveexperiencewithhighschoolteachingandteacherspriorto

workingwiththeWillamettePromise.Nineofthe13PLCfacultyhavebeeninvolvedwith

theWPfor3years.Fourofthefacultypreviouslytaughthighschool.Nineofthe13PLC

facultyhaveworkedwithhighschoolteachersoutsideoftheWP.Onaverage,thefaculty

respondingtothesurveyhavetaughtatthecollegelevelfor18years.

PreviousexperienceofWPPLCfacultywithhighschoolteachersandsomebeing

formerteachersthemselvesinalllikelihoodcontributesmuchtothesuccessofthePLCs.It

providesgreaterinsightintotherelatabilityofthePLCfacultytothehighschoolteachers.

WhenobservingthePLCfaculty,inparticularthosewhoeitherhaveexperiencewithhigh

schoolteachersorwerehighschoolteachersthemselveswereabletoprovideexamples,

activitiesandteachingstrategiesthataremoreapplicabletohighschoolteachers.

FacultywereaskedseveralquestionsregardingtheirworkwiththePLCsandthe

coursealignment.100%offacultythoughtthattheircollege-levelcourse(s)were

moderatelyorcompletelyalignedwiththehighschoolWPcourse.

Similarly,tohighschoolteachers,PLCfacultywereaskedtowhatdegree

theyfeltvalued.TheperceptionofbeingvaluedwithinthePLCwashigh,with88%

feelingveryvaluedorvalued.Thefacultyhaveaconsiderableamountofinteraction

withthehighschoolteachersintheirPLCsandreceiveconsiderablefeedbackfrom

themonanongoingbasis.ObservingthePLCsoverthecourseoftheyear,itisvery

apparentthatthehighschoolteachersvaluetheirrelationshipwiththePLCfaculty.

FacultywereaskedprovidefeedbackontheWPabilitytoachieveitsgoals.

Overwhelmingly,facultyindicatedstrongsupportforthattheachievementofthegoalsset

bytheWP(seeTable22).Inaddition,80%offacultyareveryconfidentwiththe

standards/curriculumtheirPLCshavedeveloped.


39

Table22.PerceptionofWPGoalAttainment(n=10) Verylikely/SomewhatlikelyIncreasecollege-goingcultureinareaschools.

90%

Increasethenumberofstudentswhoconsideranytypeofpostsecondaryeducationasapathafterhighschool.

100%

Ensuretherigorofhighschoolacceleratedlearningcoursework.

90%

Increaseaccesstoacceleratedlearningforhistoricallydisadvantagedstudents

100%

Increasecollaborationbetweenhighschoolandcollegefaculty

100%


40

Conclusion

TheWillamettePromise,inthefinalyearofatwo-yeargrantcycle,successfully

accomplishedtheambitiousgoalsestablishedforthegrant.In2016–17,WPexpandedfrom

itsoriginal20schooldistrictswithintheWillametteEducationServiceDistricttoatotalof

41schooldistrictsfromLaneEducationServiceDistrict,NorthwestRegionalEducation

ServiceDistrictandMultnomahEducationServiceDistrict.Withthatexpansion,the

numberofhighschoolteachersinvolvedgrewfrom115to201in2016-17.Sincethe

establishmentoftheWP,4,147studentshaveearned23,965creditsin23courses.

In2016-17,atotalof1,735studentspassedatleastoneWPcourseandearned

collegecredit.Courseswereofferedinninesubjectareas:Biology,Chemistry,

Communication,ComputerScience,Geography,Math,Psychology,SpanishandWriting.

Fouradditionalcoursesweredevelopedduring2016–17andwillbeofferedin2017–18:

Math251,Biology103,Biology200,andHistory201.

ConsistentwiththeWPcommitmenttotheequitylens,theWPcontinuestoreach

outandprovideopportunitiesforunderrepresentedstudentstoearncollegecreditwithin

highschool.Approximately,34%ofWPstudentswerestudentsofcolor,36%were

economicallydisadvantagedand28%ofstudentsearningcreditwerefromruralschool

districts.Aportionofstudents,17%,werechronicallyabsentstudents.Similartothe

researchonchronicallyabsentstudents,thelargestportion(41%)ofchronicallyabsent

studentswere12thgraders.

WillamettePromisecontinuestoofferaccesstocollegecreditforruralstudents.

Manystudentsinourruralschoolsfacesignificantchallenges.Ruralstudentsaremore

likelytobechronicallyabsent,economicallydisadvantaged(34%)andresideinlocalsthat

arenotincloseproximitytoanycollegecampuses.TheabilityfortheWPtohaveacollege

footprintintheseschools,providesarealisticexposuretoacollege-goingculturethatcould

otherwisebeabsent.For65%ofruralschools,WillamettePromiseofferstheonlyaccessto

thecollegecoursesofferedthroughtheWP.TheopportunityforWPtoproviderural

schoolswithaccesstocollegecreditandacollege-goingculturecannotbeoverstated.

TheProfessionalLearningCommunitiescomposedofbothhighschooland

college/universityfacultycontinuetobeakeytothesuccessoftheWillamettePromise.

UnlikemostPLCsthatonlyinvolvehighschoolteachers,WPisuniqueinthatthePLCisa

collaborativeeffortbetweencollege/universityfacultyandhighschoolteachers.Asinpast

years,theoverallsatisfactionwithinthePLCsremainedhigh.Highschoolteacherscontinue


41

tocitehavingtheopportunitytonotonlycollaboratewiththeircolleaguesintheirfieldbut

alsohighereducationfacultyasabenefitoftheirinvolvementintheWP.

MuchoftheworkwithinthePLCsthispastyearfocusedonthecontinued

refinementoftherubricsandassessmentsandprofessionaldevelopment.ThePLCswere

abletointegratemoreintentionalprofessionaldevelopmentintothemeetingtime,while

otherPLCsstillneededtodevotemoretimetorefiningassessmentsandrubrics.PLCs

continuetoseekwaysforlearning-focusedcollaborations.

Therewere311WPstudentswhograduatedin2016thatattendedcollegeforat

leastonetermpost-graduation.Approximately70%ofHispanicstudentsand64%ofWhite

studentsenrolledinacollege/university.Fifty-one(51%)percentattendedatwo-year

collegeand48%afour-yearcollegeoruniversity.Ofthoseattendingatwo-yearcollege,

41%enrolledinChemeketaCommunityCollege.Only14ofthe311(5%)studentswentout

ofstate.In2015–16,25312thgradersmetthecriteriaforbeingeconomically

disadvantaged;ofthose,64%enrolledinacollegeoruniversityforatleastoneterm.

WillamettePromiseprovidesanopportunityforhighschoolstobecomemore

engaging,rigorous,andrelevantforstudents.AsOregonschoolsarechallengedby

retentionandgraduationratesinsecondaryschools,helpingstudentsseetherelevanceof

theircourseworkandhelpingstudentsdiscovertheircareeraspirationsmovesstudents

downthepathofsuccess.WPislayingthefoundationforthisworkbycollaboratingwith

Oregonschoolstoprovideopportunitiesforyouthtolearnaboutcareersandinvolvethem

inrigorous,relevant,andengagingclassesandexperiencesthatwillhelpsmooththeir

transitiontopostsecondarysuccess.

RecommendationsThefollowingarerecommendationsfortheWillamettePromisetoconsider:1.Developasystemtotrackandmonitorenrollmentofstudentsineachclass.2.Developamethodtotrackthosestudentswho: a)donotpasstheirclass(es) b)selectnottotranscripttheirgrades.

Astheprogramcontinuestoexpandandreceivescrutiny,thiswillbecomemoreimportant.

3.TheworkofthePLCsneedstobroadenthescopeandoffermoreprofessionaldevelopmentopportunitiesforitsmembers.


42

4.Administercourseevaluationsinatimelymanner,ratherthanjustattheendoftheacademicyear.5.DevelopasystemthatwillallowcomparisonsofWPstudentstonon-WPstudents. a)Attendance b)GPA c)Testscores d)Graduationrates e)Drop-outrates f)College/communitycollegeattendance g)Collegepersistenceanddegreeobtainment h)Ruralschooldistrictanalysis6)Developasystemtotrackthelevelofteacherparticipationandretention.


43

Appendices


44

AppendixA

1.InstituteofEducationScience.(2016).“UndergraduateEnrollment.”NationalCenterforEducationalStatistics.Retrievedfrom:http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cha.asp

2.OregonDepartmentofEducation.OregonReportCard2014-15.SchoolandDistrictReportCards.Retrievedfromhttp://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=116

3.OregonDepartmentofEducation,(2016-17)“RegularAttendersReport,”Retrievedfromhttp://www.oregon.gov/ode/reports-and-data/students/Pages/Attendance-and-Absenteeism.aspx

4.Pierson,A.,&Hanson,H.(2015).“ComparingpostsecondaryenrollmentandpersistenceamongruralandnonruralstudentsinOregon.”(REL2015-076).Washington,DC:USDepartmentofEducation,InstituteofEducationSciences,NationalCenterforEducationEvaluationandRegionalAssistance,RegionalEducationalLaboratoryNorthwest.Retrievedfromhttp://ies.ed.gov./ncee/edlabs

5.ChalkboardProject,“RuralEducationinOregon,”Retrievedfromhttps://chalkboardproject.org/sites/default/files/RuralEducationReportFINAL_0.pdf

6.Stevens,C.,&Kim-Gervey,C.(2016).“ChronicAbsenteeismReport.”ChiefEducationOffice.www.education.oregon.gov.


45

AppendixBListofDataSources

1.NationalCenterforEducationSciencesData2.NationalStudentClearinghouseDataforOregonWillamettePromiseGraduates3.OregonDepartmentofEducation(ODE)StudentData4.OregonDepartmentofEducation(ODE)DistrictReportCards5.ProfessionalLearningCommunity(PLC)EndofYearSurvey

Documents

Willamette Promise 2016-17 Annual Report - WESD€¦ · In fall of 2015, WESD was awarded a Promise Continuation Grant to support the regional education and collaboration efforts